Sri Nrusinghanatha, is a temple of

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of Sc ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

, situated at the foothills of

Gandhamardhan hills Gandhamardan Hills or Gandhamardan Parbat ( or, ଗନ୍ଧମାର୍ଦନ ପର୍ବତ) is a hill located in between Balangir and Bargarh district of Odisha, India. This hill is well known for medicinal plants. There is a Bauxite reserve ...

near Paikmal,

Bargarh Bargarh is a city and municipality in Bargarh district in the state of odisha in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Bargarh District. Bargarh is popularly known for intensive cultivation of 'paddy', therefore called "Bhata Handi" o ...

. The King of

Patna Patna ( ), historically known as Pataliputra, is the capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Patna had a population of 2.35 million, making it the 19th largest city in India. ...

, Baijal Deva laid the foundation of this historic temple in early 15th century CE. It is only 45 feet in height, divided into two parts: the first being the seat of the Lord Nrusinghnath, the second allotted to Jagamohan (antechamber having 3 gates and each supported by 4 pillars.

History

Around six hundred years ago, a woman Jamuna Kandhuni as referred in the book "Nrusingha Charitra" in

Odia language Odia (, ISO: , ; formerly rendered Oriya ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the official language in Odisha (formerly rendered Orissa), where native speakers make up 82% of the population, and it is al ...

composed a Kavya that sings the glory of Marjara Keshari in regard to suppression and repression of torture and tyranny of Musika Daitya. According to the legend, when people were greatly afflicted by Musika

Daitya According to ancient scriptures, the daityas (Sanskrit: दैत्य) are a race of asuras, descending from Kashyapa and his wife, Diti. Prominent members of this race include Hiranyaksha, Hiranyakashipu, and Mahabali, all of whom overran t ...

(the incarnate Mouse Demon), Vishnu Mani in the appearance(Incarnation) of Marjara Keshari, in His Feline Form, ran to eat the demonic mouse form - Musika Daitya who never came out from the tunnel and Marjara Keshari waited from that day. The temple is reputed from that day with this mythological history. This story is symbolic of the grounding the demonic evil power of tyranny and torture that never dared to come out further and Lord Nrusinghnath alias Marjara Keshari has been guarding it since then. According to

Huen Tsang Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...

, the Chinese traveler, this place was a centre of

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

scriptural learning. Lord Nrushinghanath is a much-adored deity of

and a great fair is held in his honour on the 14th day of bright fortnight in the month of

Vaisakha Vaisakha; hi, बैसाख, Baisākh; pa, ਵਿਸਾਖ/وساکھ , te, వైశాఖ, kn, ವೈಶಾಖ, Vaiśākha; ml, വൈശാഖം, Vaiśākham; mr, वैशाख, Vaiśākh; ta, வைகாசி, Vaikāci; ne, � ...

. According to

Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...

and

Devnagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental writing system), based on the a ...

inscriptions, the temple was built by Baijal Dev in the early 15th century AD. The temple is a masterpiece of

Kalinga Architecture The Kaḷinga architectural style is a style of Hindu architecture which flourished in the ancient Kalinga previously known as Utkal and in present eastern Indian state of Odisha. The style consists of three distinct types of temples: Rekha De ...

Deula Deula ( ''deuḷa'') is an architectural element in a Hindu temple in the Kalinga architecture style of the Odishan temples in Eastern India. Sometimes the whole temple is also referred to as ''Deula''. The word "deula" in Odia language means a ...

style prevalent in the

region of

Tourism

Harishankar temple, Bargarh district, Odisha, India

Here you can also visit Chal dhar (400 m from Temple), Bhim Dhar (425 m from Temple), Sita Kunda (500 m from Temple), Panchupandav (1.5 km from Temple), Kapil Dhar (4 km from Temple), Supta Dhar (7 km from Temple), Satyaamb (9 km from Temple), Bhim Madua (11 km from Temple), Happy Point (12 km from Temple). In recent year tourism has been developing in around

. An annual big fair held on Nrusimha-chatrurdasi day during

Vaishakha Vaisakha; hi, बैसाख, Baisākh; pa, ਵਿਸਾਖ/وساکھ , te, వైశాఖ, kn, ವೈಶಾಖ, Vaiśākha; ml, വൈശാഖം, Vaiśākham; mr, वैशाख, Vaiśākh; ta, வைகாசி, Vaikāci; ne, � ...

shukla chaturdashi (in May) attracts thousands of pilgrims from far and near. Nrusimhanath Temple is about 110 km west of Baragarh and 164 km from

Sambalpur Sambalpur () is the fifth largest city in the Indian State of Odisha. It is located on the banks of river Mahanadi, with a population of 335,761 (as per 2011 census). Prehistoric settlements have been recorded there. It is the home of the Samb ...

. Khariar Road Railway Station is the nearest railhead. Here also a beautiful garden created just near the temple, where Lord

Krishna Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...

different avatar shown and also a 28 ft

Hanuman Hanuman (; sa, हनुमान, ), also called Anjaneya (), is a Hindu god and a divine '' vanara'' companion of the god Rama. Hanuman is one of the central characters of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. He is an ardent devotee of Rama and ...

Statue created inside the center of Garden.

References

visit Baragarh, the Vaikuntha Dham

Nrusimhanath temple

External links

Official WebsiteOdisha GovernmentOdisha Tourism
{{Authority control Vishnu temples Hindu temples in Odisha Bargarh district

History

Tourism

See also

References

External links